75th Anniversary – Doolittle Raid: 1/72 B-25 Doolittle Raider

I realized the day before April 18, 2017 that the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid was coming up the next day – and I was close to finishing my 1/72 B-25 in Doolittle Raider markings.

The kit is out of the box but with aftermarket decals and some mission-specific detailing, such as black spinners and no yellow tips on the props. It is photographed with my 1992 1/700 Tamiya USS Hornet (CV-8) modeled as of April 18, 1942, and my copy of Ted Lawson’s “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo” book about the raid.

Congratulations for your work on theDoolittle raid both Craig and Michael.
I have a question : with the weight of the loaded bombers on deck was the Hornet still able to carry some fighters and dive bombers in her hangars below deck for protection on the return journey or were they empty because of the weight of the B25’s ?

No, they carried the full air group in the hangar bay (I think a number of the aircraft were tied to the ceiling to make room). The plan was always that if they were sighted out of range of Japan, the B-25s would be pushed overboard so they operate the ship’s planes.

Boy did you bring back some memories, read that book when I was in 6 or 7th grade. Thought it was great read and fell in love with the B-25, never miss an opportunity to see one either in a museum or in the air. Nice job Michael.